Fifty Shades of Grey fan favorite Ian Somerhalder seems to have something of a secret identity ... as a political junkie! As a vocal Obama supporter who is passionate about the environment, it's no surprise he made the effort to get to Washington, D.C., for the presidential inauguration this week. But as it turns out, his girlfriend, co-star, and contender to play Anastasia Steele,Nina Dobrev, didn't join him.

Ian flew from Atlanta (where The Vampire Diaries is currently shooting) to D.C. for the inauguration, tweeting, "DC bound for inauguration! Ready to freeze for huge gathering of truly bad-ass people. Thank you to all of my bosses for letting me go to Washington!” Meanwhile, Nina was tweeting about work ... “Weather is so weird in ATL ... One day it’s supposed to snow, the next day it’s sunny, not a cloud in the sky. Bi polar weather.” Could the time apart signal trouble in undead paradise?

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Meh, doubtful. But I would guess it does signal that Nina's not nearly as interested or passionate about politics as Ian. Or the CW bosses were only cool with letting just one of them go ... But fans who keep up with both stars on Twitter are more apt to see Ian get worked up about political matters. And, hey, if he just happens to be the more politically-involved one in the relationship, that's okay!

Personally, I tend to be much more invested in politics than my fiance. In general, he's more skeptical about all politicians and content to tune a lot of the banter out. Sure, he gets involved in the biggest moments (like on Election Day), and the occasional issue or news story will send him on a tirade, but I'm the one signing online petitions and writing my fiery opinions on what's going on in Washington.

That dynamic seems to work just fine, because in the end, even if he's not as active as I am, I know he sees eye-to-eye with me on the big issues. We're on the same side of the aisle. And to me, that matters. I feel like a lot of people would struggle to make it work with someone whose politics were radically differentfrom their own. Because there's more to where you stand on the issues than the issues themselves. Where you stand says a lot about who you are and what you value as a person.

So even if she's not as keen to jet off to Washington, hopefully Nina's views are in tune with Ian's ... Because no matter how adorable they are on- and off-screen, if they aren't on the same page politically, I'm not sure they're built to last.

How do you feel about sharing the same political passions and views with your partner?